


Viral Romantics

by WhiteLionOfVoltron



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Attempted Sexual Assault, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Corgis, Cuban Lance (Voltron), Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Gay Keith (Voltron), Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith and Shiro are Siblings, Lance (Voltron) Has Anxiety, Lance (Voltron) is a Dork, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Manipulative Relationship, Multi, Nyma and Rolo are assholes, Pidge | Katie Holt is Savage, References to Drugs, Shares some plot points with Accidental Love but there's no need for you to read it, So many t a g s, Texan Keith (Voltron), The tags make it sound a lot worse than it is, youtubers au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-02
Updated: 2017-08-10
Packaged: 2018-12-10 02:09:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11681814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiteLionOfVoltron/pseuds/WhiteLionOfVoltron
Summary: Lance is a huge YouTuber and Keith is small time. Until he collabs with Lance, and things start picking up. Unfortunately, Lance runs into some trouble and Keith ends up caught in the middle.





	1. Motorcycle Rides and Dog Parks

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Shxrx](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shxrx/gifts).



> Welcome you whores. (ILY)  
> So I've kept this p much on the down low, but here it is! I worked really hard on it but feel free to judge me!

**@pidgeon**

New video coming out today!

**@tacoboi**

Is Rover gonna be in it? (・ω・)

**@pidgeon**

Why are you so obsessed with my new dog I already had a rabbit?

**@tacoboi**

Because it’s a fucking corgi and you know I love corgis. Besides it’s not the same as a bunny.

**@chunkymonkey**

Lance you have a puppy why are you mooching off of Pidge’s?

**@tacoboi**

Stop questioning me.

**@keefkogane**

I mean they have the right to question you.

**@scarface**

You guys are insufferable. I’m turning all your notifications off.

**@princesszeldallura**

Same.

**@klancekid**

Omg u guys are literally friendship goals (or relationship goals uwu)

**@tacoboi**

U kno what fuk u guys.

**@keefkogane**

I don’t know why you guys like dogs so much. Cats are just as awesome.

**@tacoboi**

Cats are mean.

**@keefkogane**

Um that is opinionated? Not all cats are jerks.

**@pidgeon**

I have nothing against cats. I just happen to like dogs more.

**@scarface**

I like horses ^^

**@princesszeldallura**

WE KNOW

**@pidgeon**

You literally talk about her all the time we fucking get it.

**@scarface**

[[IMAGE POSTED]](http://www.friesianheritage.com/IMAGES/Stallions/Leonardo/leonardo_norsk_photo7.jpg)

She’s so pretty ^^

**@keefkogane**

Aaand I’m deleting Twitter.

**@scarface**

You know u love her little bro.

**@keefkogane**

I’m just glad I don’t have to live with her. That horse fucking hates me.

**@scarface**

You just don’t know how to handle her.

**@keefkogane**

Shiro we literally grew up raising horses. I know how to handle a horse. Yours is just an asshole.

**@tacoboi**

How can a horse be an asshole?

**@chunkymonkey**

Omg my notifications.

* * *

     The argument continues for at least another hour, no clear winner. Lance eventually ends it by saying he needs to go record, and he hears his notifications gradually settle down and stop. He doesn’t even really know any of these people…well, he knows Hunk and Allura, but the others are strangers outside of the internet. Keith hasn’t even had a face reveal yet. Of course, all his videos are about riding on his bike, so Lance understands why. That, and the fact that literally everyone’s eyes are on him right now. He’s recently gone viral on Twitter and YouTube because of a video of him rescuing a small kitten by the side of the road. Red is an Abyssinian kitten, and she’s staying with Keith at his apartment in San Francisco. He’d even been featured in a segment from Inside Edition. His channel gained eighteen thousand subscribers in under a week. He knows how scary it can be to suddenly become so popular. When his channel hit a hundred thousand subscribers, he panicked. Now, after three years on YouTube, he was about to hit one million subscribers. He’s been planning what to do for weeks, and he’s been thinking of doing a collaboration with one of his friends. To do that though, he’d need to actually be a socially functioning human being and he couldn’t really be bothered.

     He sets up his tripod to get ready for his next cover, something he does on his days off from work when he’s not vlogging.

     He wonders idly what Keith is doing when he doesn’t ride his bike.

* * *

     Keith pretty much spends his whole life on his motorcycle. So, whenever something goes wrong, it’s a huge surprise to both him and his viewers.

     And this week was no exception.

     In the middle of filming a video, his front tire hits a rock in the middle of the road and his bike flips forward and throws him off into the street. He grunts loudly.

      “Agh…fuck,” he murmurs.

     He rolls over and looks back at his bike.

     “Fucking shit!” he groans. His bike’s front tire has popped and there’s no way he’s getting home on it.

     He feels a warm, sticky liquid run down his arms and looks down at his elbows. His skin is scraped up from the road and his nice leather jacket is ruined.

     “Holy shit guys…that was scary,” he pants heavily and stands up. He stumbles over to inspect his bike. Other than the tire, nothing seems too badly damaged. “Dammit…doesn’t look like I’ll be getting home from here though.”

     He takes out his phone and dials Shiro’s number.

     “Hey Shiro, can you come pick me up? _No_ , I didn’t run out of gas you ass. I’m fine. Uh huh. Yeah, I’ll send you the area. Thanks, man. And _don’t_ bring the horse,” he barks at his brother.

     He takes his helmet off and stops his GoPro recording.

     This is gonna be a _looong_ day.

* * *

     Hunk likes to cook even when he’s not filming his daily cooking tutorials. He recently uploaded a video about this really great fudge that’s doing great. He’s been planning on asking Lance to join him for his five hundred thousand subscribers video. But Lance has always been a bit timid about working with other people. He doesn’t really know why though. Lance is a really social guy, and he loves hanging out with other people. Some people have berated him on Twitter and YouTube for hogging his glory and not wanting to bring his subscribers to other people’s channels. He never even mentions his friends unless it’s on Twitter.

     But hey, what Lance does is up to him.

* * *

     Shiro is out for blood. Mainly Keith’s, as he’s found out Keith lied about being fine. His arms were scraped up and bloody, and they left the hospital with Keith in a brace after spraining his left wrist. He had to take Keith home too, as his bike was kaput. He’ll be late to upload his gameplay video today too.

     “Why did you tell me you were fine?!” he snaps.

     “I-I thought I was,” he sighs, running his good hand through his jet-black hair.

     “Yeah, well at least the insurance covers it,” his brother nods.

* * *

     Allura loves her makeup videos. Because she gets to spread her expertise. She’s been highly sought-after makeup artist in the city of Los Angeles and she’s made a lot of money because of it. She lives in a pretty lavish house, nice and bright with a large pool and a hot tub just outside. She has four guinea pigs, each a different color that she recently adopted. It’s a nice life, but she knows that there are a lot of people less fortunate, so she never takes it for granted.

* * *

     Pidge is a quiet girl. Her brother is two years older than her and currently has a much smaller YouTube channel where he uploads videos about different devices or vehicles at just over one thousand subscribers. She herself had twenty thousand and was quite well known online. She’s usually recognized by her internet persona, Pidge, but all of her fans know her real name is Katie Holt. Her rabbit Green and her new corgi Rover are what really make her popular, but she normally uploads programming videos or vlogs. She lives in San Francisco and hangs out with Keith a lot, and besides Shiro, she’s the only one to have ever seen his face.

     Of course, she’s been trying to get him to do a face reveal for a while.

* * *

     “Hey guys, I’m back,” Keith greets, his GoPro recording the mechanic as he examines the tire on the bike. “I ended up spraining my fucking wrist.”

     He turns the camera to his wrist and laughs. “Jesus Christ that was close. Coulda broke my fucking face.”

     He turns the camera off and removes his helmet.

     “It’ll be about a seventy dollar repair unless you want to change the tire yourself,” he shrugs, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

     “How much for just the tire?” he inquires.

     “Forty,” he replies.

     “Done,” he shakes the man’s hand.

* * *

     Lance hears his phone go off and looks at the clock. Keith just uploaded. He’s memorized everyone’s upload times, and the only one who would post around now is Keith. He picks up his phone and checks the video title.

     _‘CRASHING MY BIKE! [BLOOD WARNING]’_

Holy shit.

     He opens his phone and checks Twitter.

* * *

**@pidgeon**

**@keefkogane** Hey Keith u okay?

**@chunkymonkey**

**@keefkogane** Just saw the video, hope you’re feeling okay.

**@tacoboi**

What the fuck how did you crash you are literally the best on that fucking bike? **@keefkogane**

**@keefkogane**

LOLOL I’m fine guys.

**@tacoboi**

Good lol. How bad did u get fucked up?

**@keefkogane**

Sprained my wrist.

**@pidgeon**

How long do you have to wear the brace?

**@keefkogane**

A week or two. I can still ride though, just not as much.

**@tacoboi**

Good don’t want to lose all dem subs.

**@keefkogane**

Eh, I don’t really care.

**@shalluraisreal**

Omg they’re so cute

**@tacoboi**

Excuse me I am sexy. Keith is the cute one.

**@tacoboi**

Wait that came out wrong

**@klancelovr**

OMG HE SAID KEITH IS CUTE

**@keefkogane**

And begin the shipping war.

**@klancekid**

He acknowledged the ship I’m dead.

**@shalluraisreal**

Shiro still refuses to acknowledge us u guys are lucky

**@tacoboi**

ALL I’M SAYING IS THAT HE SNEEZES LIKE A KITTEN

**@tacoboi**

I MEAN

**@pidgeon**

Digging your own grave pal.

**@klancekid**

We are now complete. :’)

**@tacoboi**

Someone kill me please

**@tacoboi**

I’m gonna go die.

**@everythingisblueboi**

_Replying to **@tacoboi**_

Film the Youth cover first.

**@tacoboi**

K.

**@everythingisblueboi**

Can’t wait. ;)

**@redisbae**

So what r u gonna do for the 20k vid?  **@keefkogane**

**@everythingisblueboi**

Yeah, what are you gonna do for 1 million? **@tacoboi**

**@keefkogane**

Idk.

**@tacoboi**

Uhhh

**@klancekid**

OMG U TWO SHOULD DO A COLLAB

**@chunkymonkey**

I agree

**@pidgeon**

Mmhm

**@klancekid**

Omg they totally ship it.

**@pidgeon**

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

**@klancelovr**

OMG

* * *

     Lance starts up his camera.

     “Sup you whores! Lance here. So, we’re getting really close to ONE MILLION!” [[noise]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3Awl_5c8jI)

      “Now, I hear you guys all want me to do a collab with one of my friends. I’ve also seen some of you say that I’m an attention whore. First of all, I am an attention _slut,_ there is a difference. Second, fine! You want a collab I’ll give you a fuckin collab. Vote in this poll…,” he points up into the top right corner where a small info card pops up with a link to the poll. “which one of my friends you want to see in the one million subs and vote in _this_ poll,” this time he points straight up to an annotation. “what you want to see us do! Now, on to the vlog.”

* * *

      Keith pauses the video and clicks on the first poll, idly wondering which one of them will be unfortunate enough to be voted into a video with Lance McClain-Sanchez.

* * *

[[POLL]](http://imgur.com/a/9isOr)

* * *

    Keith chokes. _Fuck_. _WHY_ did Lance put him on the poll? Wouldn’t that require a face reveal?

* * *

**@keefkogane**

**@tacoboi** Wtf why am I in the poll?

**@tacoboi**

_Replying to **@keefkogane**_

IDK I NEEDED ANOTHER FRIEND TO FILL THE FIFTH SLOT AND NOW YOU’RE WINNING?!

**@klancekid**

Omg this is happening

**@redisbae**

Yo are we gonna get a face reveal?

**@klancelovr**

I’d rather have the coming out video hahaaaa

**@tacoboi**

Pfft I’m straight as fucc boi

**@everythingisblueboi**

We all know that’s a lie.

**@chunkymonkey**

I feel betrayed by your fans Lance

**@tacoboi**

I mean I’m pretty sure they only want Keith because they want to see his face.

**@shalluraisreal**

He’s not wrong.

**@redisbae**

Tru tru.

**@tacoboi**

I mean if he doesn’t want to I’m not going to make him do it.

**@klancekid**

I cannot accept this mutiny.

**@redisbae**

I mean it is up to Keith if he wants to do a face reveal…

**@keefkogane**

I could just wear sunglasses with a hoodie or something…

**@scarface**

Point.

**@tacoboi**

I’m fine with that. But like you have to still talk and shit. Plus, easy on the clothing it’s fucking hot.

**@klancekid**

OMG you guys should ride Keith’s bike together for the collab.

**@tacoboi**

Nice suggestion I’ll add it to the poll. : )

**@klancelovr**

OH MY FUCKING CHRIST.

**@princesszeldallura**

This is my every dream coming true on Twitter.

**@everythingisblueboi**

Same but omg she ships it too.

**@klancelovr**

My life is now complete I can die happy. :’)

**@klancekid**

But u have to stay for the collab.

**@scarface**

Where does Lance even live?

**@everythingisblueboi**

Los Angeles

**@tacoboi**

You know it’s bad when even your fans can answer that before you lololol.

**@keefkogane**

So we can arrange a place right?

**@tacoboi**

Yeah just let me look.

**@tacoboi**

Btw do I get to see your face?

**@keefkogane**

No

**@tacoboi**

Fuk u too.

* * *

     Keith wins the poll. Currently, Lance is live streaming from his phone as the numbers fluctuate between 999,990 and 999,995.

     “Holy shit guys we’re so fucking close!” he squeals happily.

     999,996.

     Screech.

     999,998.

     “FUCK YES!”

     999,999.

     “OH FUCKING PLEASE DO IT ALREADY!”

     1,000,000.

     “FUCK YEAAAAAAH!” Lance screams happily.

     He uses the confetti popper and the little party horn he bought to celebrate. The chat goes fucking insane, and he can see Keith, Hunk, and Pidge spamming emotes by their moderator icons.

     He’s more excited for this collab though. It should help Keith get more popular when his viewers see the video, and as long as his friends are happy so is he. He’s known Hunk since they were kids and the two of them started their channels around the same time. Hunk’s channel was admittedly less popular than his own, but hey, he was doing well.

      The two start messaging on Twitter and agree on when and where to meet. The collab will take place on Saturday when Keith isn’t at work—he works at the motorcycle shop downtown. Keith will be wearing a tank top, a hoodie, and a pair of sunglasses.

       And all the fans on Twitter are having fits.

* * *

**@klancelovr**

Omg so are you all aware that this shit is happening?

* * *

_Quoted Tweet_

**_@tacoboi_ **

_Yo so Venice Beach right **@keefkogane**_

* * *

**@klancekid**

OMG

**@everythingisblueboi**

His first collab I am so proud :’)

**@tacoboi**

SHIT THAT WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE PUBLIC

**@tacoboi**

FUCC

**@keefkogane**

How do you mess up that badly?

**@keefkogane**

Also yes Venice Beach.

**@redisbae**

*begins the Pythagorean Theorem to figure out what time to be there so she can stalk them*

**@tacoboi**

FUCC ME MAN

**@shalluraisreal**

_Replying to **@tacoboi**_

Okay ;)))

**@klancekid**

_Replying to **@tacoboi** and  **@shalluraisreal**_

Except that’s Keith’s job ;)))))))

**@shalluraisreal**

True.

* * *

      Keith’s bike roars as it approaches Venice Beach. He’s been on the road for several hours and only stopped a couple times. He’s not tired, more excited to meet Lance than anything. It’s great to meet another Youtuber when you don’t know what you’re doing yourself.

      He spots Lance in the crowd of people immediately. He’s clearly been here all day, as he’s wearing a tank top and swim trunks and _soaking_ wet. His hair is plastered to his forehead and he’s flirting with a group of bashful girls. He signs their t-shirts and they dance happily. They’re clearly fans, so he hangs back and revs the engine loudly. A few people look up in annoyance, but Lance glances toward the noise and smiles brightly. He jogs over as Keith removes his helmet and shakes his hair out, careful to keep his sunglasses on.

     “Holy shit man you have a mullet,” Lance laughs loudly. “I don’t care what you say that is going on Twitter.”

     Keith quickly yanks his hoodie up. “Fuck you.”

     “Wait…,” Lance examines his face closer. “Are you wearing _makeup_?”

     He shrugs. “Better for no one to recognize me.”

     Lance sighs.

     “Whatever. Let’s get to recording.”

     Lance turns on his vlogging camera.

     “How’s it going sluts? Lance here,” he greets.

     “That’s rude,” Keith mutters from off-camera.

     “You do not understand the meaning of the word _joke_ do you?” he says in a deadpan voice.

     “Fuck you,” he barks teasingly.

“Alright let’s just get on the fucking bike. I gave you my address, right?” he inquires.

     “Yeah I’ve got it,” he nods, grabbing his helmet and putting it back on.

     “Wait, where’s my helmet?” Lance squeals.

     “I mean, there _is_ one. But uh, you don’t have to wear it,” he shrugs.

     “Uh, I kind of do,” he stresses, catching the helmet that Keith throws to him. He almost drops the camera. He shoots Keith a venomous look and starts to put it on.

     “I mean if you’re chicken…,” he shrugs.

     “I will rip your helmet off in front of the internet,” he turns back around as he slips his visor down.

     It’s a bluff, but it shuts Keith up so Lance considers it a win.

Keith climbs on the bike and pats the seat behind him.

     “What do I have to do?” he inquires nervously, biting his lip.

     “Get on behind me and hold on tight,” he arches an eyebrow.

     “To what?” he squeaks.

     “Either me or the bike. Though if you hold onto the bike you’ll need to put the camera down,” he shrugs.

     “F-fine,” he sighs.

     “You’re not _nervous_ , are you hotshot?” he smirks.

     “No! I’m just concerned because you literally crashed this last week,” he lies.

     “Sure,” Keith rolls his eyes beneath the visor.

     Lance, still recording, climbs onto the bike behind Keith and wraps one arm around his waist. The other clutches his nice camera for dear life.

     “Whoa whoa wait…you’re literally the only one keeping me on this thing?!” he squeals as Keith revs the engine.

     Keith grins.

     “Yup!”

* * *

     Lance screams as Keith takes off. He has to struggle to hold on and he’s sure the camera just captured him accidentally attempt the Heimlich on Keith. He presses his cheek against the back of Keith’s leather jacket and squeezes his eyes shut as they turn onto the main road to Lance’s house. Keith feels his cheeks heat up as Lance’s arm tightens around his abdomen and he feels Lance’s face against his back.

     Lance assumes the heat in his cheeks is just from the sun burning Keith’s jacket into his face but little does he know the camera caught the slightest blush creeping up his neck.

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Okay so I know this is a huge tease to you guys but we just got back to my place and Keith tried to kill me.

**@keefkogane**

Um I did not try to kill you we were going below the fucking speed limit.

**@tacoboi**

As revenge for teasing me I am telling them this: Keith totally has a mullet.

**@keefkogane**

IT IS NOT A MULLET HOW DARE—

**@keefkogane**

Okay maybe it is kind of a mullet.

**@tacoboi**

^^

**@klancekid**

Please excuse me for a moment I must go call 911.

**@klancelovr**

Don’t die p.

**@tacoboi**

_Replying to **@klancelovr** and **@klancekid**_

Yeah u still need to see the collab lololol

**@klancekid**

*le gasp* Senpai noticed us.

**@klancelovr**

Much honor, very thank.

**@shalluraisreal**

I am so hype for this like u guys have no idea

**@redisbae**

Same

**@everythingisblueboi**

Ditto.

* * *

     Lance makes Keith take his helmet off for the video, but the sunglasses and face makeup remain in place and he keeps his hair tied back in a short ponytail with his bangs down in front of one of his eyes that won’t quite stay in place, and Lance wonders if people will still recognize him. He’s planned a Q&A and he’s super excited for it.

     “Okay, we’re back. Sorry about the shriek fest. Keith made fun of me for it,” he glares at his friend sitting on the couch next to him.

     Keith snickers. “Shouldn’t have agreed to ride the bike then.”

     “Fuck off,” he rolls his eyes.

     “No, you,” he sticks his tongue out at Lance then blows some of his bangs out of his face before they fall back to their original position.

     Lance pulls out a set of notecards. “Alright, whatever. Let’s get into the questions. The first question is for both of us,” he clears his throat. “At Shalluraisreal on Twitter asks: ‘How did the two of you meet?’”

     “Uh…it was…didn’t you like, follow me on Twitter and then proceed to spam me with memes?” Keith arches an eyebrow over his sunglasses.

     “No…,” Lance lies. Keith shoots him a look. “Alright fine so maybe I was trolling you on Twitter. We kept talking though.”

     “Lance, _you_ kept talking. I kept telling you to fuck off and you just continued spamming memes so we started a Twitter war that had to be settled by Shiro and Hunk,” he points out.

     Lance opens his mouth to argue before realizing he can’t really fight back from this. “Whatever so what?”

     “ _So_ it’s kind of annoying when you do that,” he rolls his eyes.

     Lance smacks his arm.

     “What’s the next question?” Keith changes the subject.

     “Uh…At RedisBae on Twitter asks: ‘Why do you do what you do?’ I’ll go first,” Lance decides.

     “Go ahead then. Why do you vlog?” Keith smirks, crossing his arms.

     Lance blushes in embarrassment. “Well, as long-term fans know I have been vlogging since I was nineteen. I started mainly because Hunk and I went out to this concert and decided to film it. He suggested we put it on YouTube. But I started watching vlog channels and thought it was a cool idea. Since then I’ve met a lot of you guys and found out how supportive the community is. I decided to stick around!”

     “Nice,” Keith shrugs.

     “And what about you Mister Mystery? Why do your vlogs with a fucking GoPro?” he snickers.

     “Well, it was kinda like with your thing. I saw a few motorcycle videos last year and decided to give it a shot. I just continued going and ended up enjoying it. It’s been a pretty wild ride,” he answers.

     “Wow,” Lance hums. “Okay, the next question…is from At KlanceKid on Twitter. They asked if either of us had a partner or if we’re single.”

     “I’m single,” Keith shrugs.

     “As some of you long time fans know I was dating this girl Nyma for a couple years, but it kinda fell through last year. Turned out she was a psycho bitch,” he bursts into giggles. “So yeah, I’m single now.”

     “Sorry about that man,” Keith says softly.

     “Ah, it’s fine. This one comes from At KallyQueen on Instagram. She asks, ‘Are you guys planning on getting any more pets?’”

     “I know I’m not. I was hardly ready for Red. What about you?” Keith huffs.

     “Uh…maybe someday I’d get like a cat or maybe another dog but I think Blue is enough for me,” he shrugs.

     “Wait wait wait…your dog’s name is _Blue?_ ” Keith snickers.

     “Well…yeah. Like Blue Ivy. After our Queen Beyoncé’s little girl,” he defends his choice.

     “So do like…all of us have animals with colors for names?” he inquires.

     “Yeah kind of,” he returns.

     He picks up his puppy, an Irish Wolfhound as she bounds over and tries to climb onto his lap.

     “Okay then, next question. This one is for you. At KlanceLovr on Twitter asks if you’ll ever consider doing a face reveal,” he turns to Keith and smirks, arching an eyebrow.

     “Maybe one day…probability isn’t high but maybe,” he shrugs.

     “Alright then,” Lance frowns.

     “What’s the next one?”

     “Well…At EverythingisBlueBoi on Twitter asks if I would consider dying my hair. Absolutely! If I did it’d be like a dark blue. Like that one time Markiplier dyed his hair blue. Or maybe like a periwinkle or sky blue kinda thing.”

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Yo guys, video is processing.

**@klancelovr**

I AM

SO HYPE

**@everythingisblueboi**

I cannot express my excitement through words so

* * *

[[GIF]](https://media.giphy.com/media/l1J3AIaJEYAGfEaqs/giphy.gif)

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Keith is a nerd. Just FYI. He’s into Star Trek.

**@keefkogane**

You’re into Star Wars you’re not really one to talk.

**@klancekid**

Omg they’re arguing about nerd movies

**@klancelovr**

This argument is too pure.

* * *

     Hunk, Pidge, Allura, Shiro, and Matt all got the alerts on their phone when the video went up, and Twitter is already blowing up.

* * *

**@klancekid**

OH MY GOD KEITH IS TOTALLY HOT

**@redisbae**

But you literally only saw his jaw and I’m pretty sure he was wearing makeup.

**@keefkogane**

_Replying to **@redisbae**_

I was ^^

**@redisbae**

Hai senpai

**@tacoboi**

I stand by that mullet statement.

**@scarface**

He’s not wrong. I’ve told him he needs to cut it like 80 times

**@princesszeldallrua**

This is great

**@pidgeon**

Are you done attempting to steal my dog?

**@tacoboi**

Only for right now my child requires my attention.

* * *

     Lance turns and kneels down to pour kibble into Blue’s bowl. She bounces around and yaps a few times and then buries her head in the bowl, crunching on the little bits. Her small tail is wagging so hard her rear end is shaking side to side. He gives a small smile and pets her back and rubs her head so her ears flop back and forth.

     “Good girl,” he murmurs and pushes himself to his feet. He walks over to his phone and picks it up, pressing the power button to check it. No new notifications. Keith was supposed to Tweet him when he got back home so that he was sure he was okay.

     He’s about to set the phone down when it whistles.

* * *

**@keefkogane**

I’m fucked.

**@tacoboi**

What did you do?

**@keefkogane**

F U C K.

**@tacoboi**

W H A T D I D Y O U D O?

**@keefkogane**

I r a n o u t o f g a s?

**@tacoboi**

You fucking idiot.

* * *

     Lance is hysterical. His stomach hurts from laughing and tears are slipping from his eyes. Of fucking course Keith would forget to fill up on gas before leaving the rest stop he’d stopped at.

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Good luck pushing your bike to the next gas station bud.

**@keefkogane**

I t ‘ s l i k e t e n m i l e s

**@tacoboi**

Good luck fam.

**@keefkogane**

I hate you.

**@tacoboi**

;)

* * *

     Keith does eventually make it home some time later after managing to hitch a short ride to the gas station with a nice family that was all too trusting. He yawns and turns his key in the lock, opening his door to a dark apartment. He flips the light on and shuts the door, shrugging off his jacket and throwing it on the couch. He drops his keys on the table and flops onto the couch. He leans his head back on the cushions and feels the seat dip next to him as a small furry ball jumps up next to him. He feels soft red fur brush against his arm and smiles, letting his hand fall to pet his tiny kitten.

     “Evening baby girl,” he murmurs. “Lance is insufferable.” He checks his phone to see that Lance hasn’t Tweeted yet.

* * *

**@keefkogane**

Yo **@tacoboi** I made it home no thanks to you. Asshole.

**@tacoboi**

;))))))

* * *

     Keith rolls his eyes and puts his phone away. He picks his kitten up and carries her over to her bowl, setting her down and running a hand along her back. He opens one of his cluttered cabinets and opens a can of wet food, and Red stands up on her hind legs. Keith laughs jovially and he mashes the food up before putting it in her bowl to let her devour it like a mad dog. She lets out a meow with a slight trill behind it and noises that make her sound as if she’s saying ‘nom.’ It’s quite cute, and he finds himself grinning despite his dark attitude. He lets his rules bend. The rules he had given this cat were, do not bother him while he’s editing. Do not get on the bed. Do not be even remotely cute. And never, he repeats, _never_ purr. It’s too endearing. Now she follows no rules and literally rules the house. She gets all over the bed and purrs all the time. She lays across his lap or hands as he edits. He’s even Tweeted pictures of it. This cat has him wrapped around her pinky—er…tail. He fell head over heels for her, and he’s more famous for it. Though, it wouldn’t have mattered either way. He would have taken this cat even if he weren’t filming. He records her little eating noises and puts it on YouTube. It gets hundreds of views within the first fifteen minutes.

     It’s scary to have so many eyes on him at once. It’s part of the reason he doesn’t do a face reveal. There are a lot of crazed fans on Lance’s radar, and he hears Allura sometimes has to deal with people showing up at her house for makeup advice. He doesn’t want that for himself or for whoever he might bring into his home. This little apartment and his subscribers commenting is enough for him. The cat goes over to her water bowl and starts drinking from it, getting water all over her chin and ending up with wet front paws as she dips them in to lick water off of it. Keith gets a kick out of it. Then, he cleans her up—which she despises—and sets her on her way about the apartment. She follows him around everywhere, tottering on unsteady kitten legs that always makes him smile like an idiot. He wonders if this is what the others are like with their pets.

* * *

     Allura has four guinea pigs, but she also has a westie puppy. She’s about the cutest thing she’s ever seen, and her name is Snowball. She’s only about two months old or so, but she’s incredibly adorable. She dotes on her pets like babies, as any owner should. They all love their pets.

* * *

     Lance groans as he wakes up, stretching out on his couch. He’d been sleeping at a weird angle and now his back hurts. Great. He rolls over and looks over at the clock. Seven PM. He’ll never get back to sleep at this rate, so he gets up and goes to take Blue for a walk. He straps her into her harness and takes her outside. She jogs along ahead of him, her legs that are short but still too long for her a blur. He reads notifications on his phone as he walks. Already almost a million views on his collab, and he already has another hundred thousand subscribers just from that—probably from Keith’s channel and Allura’s shoutout last week. He smiles as he moves to put his phone away when he suddenly runs smack into someone.

     “Oh God,” Lance blushes. “I’m sorry.”

     He looks up and immediately his heart skips a beat or two. This guy is built and incredibly attractive. He’s wearing an unzipped vest with no shirt and a pair of ripped jean shorts. He has a stubbly chin and a backwards baseball cap. He’s got a toothpick sticking out of the corner of his mouth. His hair is short and dirty blonde that blocks the top half of one of his brown eyes. He has tanned skin and shiny white teeth. He looks older than Lance by a few years, and he’s walking a Weimaraner.

     “Oh, hey,” the guy says. “Sorry. I didn’t see you there. Hey, aren’t you that YouTuber, uh…Lance?”

     “Yeah,” he grins, holding out his free hand.

     The guy shakes it. “I’m Rolo. Nice to meet you. Where’re ya headed?”

     “Nowhere in particular. Why?” he inquires.

     “Just curious. There’s a dog park down the road if you want to come hang. Beezer and I love company,” he smirks, patting his big dog’s side.

     “Sounds fun. I’m down,” he looks at his puppy. “How ‘bout you girl?”

     She barks and wags her little tail. He laughs. “Alright, let’s go.”

* * *

     There are dozens of dogs around when Lance lets Blue off her leash. She immediately starts picking fights with smaller dogs, but all in good fun. Beezer bounds off to play with the bigger dogs. Rolo and Lance relax on a bench and chat. They hit it off quickly and are immediately infatuated with one another.

     “So, what do you do for a living?” Lance asks.

     “I actually work with planes. I’m the mechanic at the airport. I also do a little work with dogs. I volunteer at the animal shelter, that kinda shit,” he answers.

     “Ah, nice! I wish I had that kinda time,” Lance laughs.

     “Well uh…I mean me and a couple friends are going to this club downtown tonight to hang. Do you uh…wanna come? You could like, vlog it or something if you want. My treat on drinks too,” he offers.

     Lance considers it for a minute. “Okay, sure. Let’s do it. Uh…”

     He pauses, looking around in his bag. He withdraws a pad of paper and scribbles something down on the top sheet.

     “Here’s my number. Give me a call and let me know where to be and when to be there,” he grins happily.

     “Cool. Well, Beezer and I are gonna head home. See you at the hangout though, yeah?” Rolo smirks, standing and whistling for his dog. He comes running and puts his paws up on Rolo’s chest. He grunts and clips his leash on with a chuckle.

     “Will do,” Lance calls Blue over and clips her leash. The two go their separate ways.

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Hey guys. Going out tonight so you’ll see the vlog of that. :)

**@everythingisblueboi**

Ooo u gotta d8?

**@tacoboi**

_Replying to **@everythingisblueboi**_

Nah haha. Just a hang out with some guy I met at the dog park

**@keefkogane**

*snort* GAY

**@tacoboi**

_Replying to **@keefkogane**_

Fuck off.

**@keefkogane**

_Replying to **@tacoboi**_

;)

* * *

     Lance puts his phone in his back pocket and buttons up his Hawaiian T-Shirt and slips his sunglasses over his eyes. He pushes them up on his head and grabs his keys. He rubs Blue’s head and then heads out for the club.

     Little does he know it might be one of the worst mistakes he’ll ever make.


	2. Strain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is led to make some bad choices, and his relationships with his friends suffer for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear to you it was never meant to be this dark?

     “Sup whores, Lance here with Rolo!” he turns the camera to his friend and Rolo lets out a ‘hey’ before raising his glass of alcohol.

     “We’re just over at the club on Forty-Third Street with Rolo and a bunch of his friends for the night before I get ready for the next cover tomorrow! Gonna have a killer fuckin’ hangover though,” he laughs, and Rolo joins in.

     They both take a long swig of their beers and Lance continues talking through the vlog about the fun they’re having, the music, and getting to know Rolo before cutting it off. Lance is starting to feel a little buzzed and he’s a little concerned.

     “Hey, Rolo…I think I should probably stop. My alcohol tolerance is—“

     “Ha, what is this guy, chicken?” one of Rolo’s friends huffs.

     “Pussy,” another mumbles.

     Lance indignantly orders another drink and downs it in only a few gulps. Soon he’s downing a large glass of hardcore whiskey as the others shout chug over and over again. He’s about to order another before Rolo finally stops him. He leads him away from his friends.

     “Hey kid, listen. You really need to stop. You’re drunk. Let’s just…get you out of here,” he grabs Lance’s hand and their keys, taking Lance out to his car to get Lance back to his apartment. No way he’d let Lance go home alone. But once they get in, Rolo is eyeing Lance like a wolf eyeing a piece of meat. Before he can stop him, Rolo’s lips are on Lance’s and shoving him roughly back against the wall. Lance has to shift to avoid falling and his eyes widen. He’s hardly alert enough to refuse this move, but he can’t agree either. All he can do is go lax as Rolo slips both their shirts off and forces Lance back into his room.

* * *

     Lance wakes up with a headache and a bad case of exhaustion. He’s naked, and his clothes are strewn about on the floor. He rolls over and groans. What the hell had happened last night? The last thing he remembers is Rolo stopping him. Had…had they…? It certainly seems like they had. He climbs out of bed and keeps the blanket over himself as he gathers his clothes and gets dressed. He goes out and grabs his keys off the counter along with his bag and camera. He groans again and coughs, holding his head. He bursts from the apartment, cheeks flushed in embarrassment as he flees down the stairs of the building and away from the parking lot. He makes his way back to the bar and gets his car. He floors it home and gets out, running to his bathroom only to throw up and collapse on the floor. He’s panting heavily and shuddering like mad. His head is pounding and his vision is blurry. This is the worst hangover he’s ever had, and with such a low alcohol tolerance he’s probably going to be sick all day. He should Tweet his viewers to let them know the cover won’t be up today, but the cold tile feels so nice against his hot skin, and he ends up passing out on the bathroom floor.

* * *

     When he opens his eyes, a warm wet tongue is lapping at his face, and Blue is whimpering as she tries to wake him. He weakly lifts a hand to pet her before letting it drop to the floor. She huffs frustratedly before returning to the living room. She climbs up on the couch and whines as her short stature makes it difficult. She wanders over to the phone and knocks it off the hook. She picks it up in her mouth and brings it to Lance, but he’s out cold again. She growls and steps on the buttons like she’s seen Lance do and ends up hitting the speed dial button. It starts ringing on the other line.

     _‘Ugh…hello?’_

Blue yaps loudly.

     _‘Lance, is that you?’_

She barks again and whines, kicking at the phone with her front paw.

     _‘Blue?’_

She starts howling excitedly.

     _‘Is something wrong girl? Where’s Lance?’_

She whimpers and huffs.

     _‘Okay girl, alright. I’m coming. Lance, if you can hear me, just hold on.’_

* * *

Hunk jams his key into the lock on Lance’s door. He throws it open and slams it behind him before seeing Blue bound toward him.

     “Good girl. Where’s Lance?” he inquires.

     She snorts at him and yaps, turning toward the bathroom and trotting over to the door. Hunk rushes over and gasps. Lance is sprawled out on the floor, face pale and cheeks flushed pink. His hair is plastered to his forehead and his clothes are filthy. He smells like beer and cigarette smoke, and it makes Hunk’s nose wrinkle uncomfortably. He kneels next to his smaller friend and feels his forehead, which is understandably boiling. He sighs and knows that Lance had gone out drinking last night. But this is different. Lance usually knows when to _stop_ at least. Then he sees the bruised lips and multiple bruises and bite marks on Lance’s neck and knows he was out with someone last night. But…

     Oh shit.

     That Rolo guy. Maybe he knows what’s going on? But he doesn’t have his number. He’s sure Lance will tell him but for now, his primary concern is taking care of Lance. He carefully lifts him into his arms and carries him out to the couch. He lays him out gently and throws a blanket over him. He’s shaking like a leaf now and he’s making soft noises of discomfort. Hunk sighs and goes into the kitchen to grab a bowl of water and a rag. He leaves them on the coffee table by the couch and grabs the thermometer and a bottle of clean water for him to drink. He pulls a chair over to Lance and dips the rag in the bowl, ringing it out and folding it up before cleaning the sweat from Lance’s face and resting the rag on his forehead. His eyelids flutter as Hunk slips the thermometer under his tongue.

     “H…Hunk?” he mumbles.

     “Morning,” Hunk bites out.

     “You’re mad,” he giggles tiredly.

     “And you’re delirious. Go back to sleep,” he orders.

     “Don’ wanna,” he pouts.

     “You’re such a child,” he rolls his eyes and smooths Lance’s hair back.

     “Mmhm,” he hums and his eyes slip closed.

     Hunk takes out his phone and opens Twitter.

* * *

**@keefkogane**

Honestly want to murder my brother rn.

**@scarface**

Ily2 kiddo.

**@keefkogane**

Fuck you.

**@scarface**

Aw c’mon she didn’t mean to mess up your helmet.

**@keefkogane**

SHE LITERALLY KICKED IT ACROSS THE LAWN. N E V E R C O M I N G B A C K T O Y O U R H O U S E.

**@chunkymonkey**

Anyone got a good cure for a reaaaally bad hangover?

**@pidgeon**

What? Did you get drunk last night or something?

**@chunkymonkey**

Ah…no.

**@pidgeon**

Ohhh. Lance? I thought he couldn’t handle alcohol.

**@chunkymonkey**

He can’t. He’s really sick and still half drunk. I need to get him awake eventually so he can explain what happened. I mean I could check his camera but I doubt it would be very helpful.

**@everythingisblueboi**

OMG is he gonna be okay?

**@chunkymonkey**

_Replying to **@everythingisblueboi**_

I hope. I’ll have to check what bar he went to and check his tab.

**@redisbae**

Oooh, he’s in troublllee.

**@chunkymonkey**

_Replying to **@redisbae**_

Damn straight. He knows his tolerance for alcohol is low, so he better have a good explanation for this.

**@princesszeldalurra**

Oh boy…

* * *

     Lance wakes up about three hours later with a killer headache. He feels like shit. He groans and sits up, rag falling off his forehead and landing on his lap, making his pant leg damp. He throws it on the table and swings his legs over to the floor. He tries to stand and collapses forward. Hunk appears and his large arm catches his chest, easing him down onto the couch. He feels a hand on his forehead.

     “How’re you feeling?” he murmurs quietly.

     “Shitty,” he mutters and puts a hand on his head, running his fingers through his hair. His head is pounding, a dull ache behind his eyes. His stomach is churning and he’s shaky as all hell.

     “Why don’t you lie back down for a little longer?” Hunk suggests as he tries to force Lance back down.

     Lance grabs his wrist and eases his back against the cushions and sitting Indian style like a child. He sighs.

     “I’ve already been out all day. Let me try and get my bearings, okay?” he calms his friend. He reaches for his phone on the table as Hunk goes to get him a glass of water.

* * *

**@tacoboi**

Ugh.

**@keefkogane**

_Replying to **@tacoboi**_

Look who’s up!

**@tacoboi**

UGH.

**@keefkogane**

I’m gonna assume that means asking if you’re okay is useless.

**@tacoboi**

U G H.

**@keefkogane**

Feel better :I

**@tacoboi**

uGh.

**@chunkymonkey**

He’s still running a fever and he’s too hungover to even stand on his own…I’m not too pissed at him because of how sick he is. I think he learned his lesson.

**@tacoboi**

fUck me.

**@everythingisblueboi**

Gladly. (Hope you feel better bby ;) )

**@tacoboi**

;)))))))

**@scarface**

Keith you better not get this drunk when you go out on Tuesday.

**@keefkogane**

I’m going to the arcade on Tuesday wtf…

**@scarface**

We both know what kind of people your work friends are.

**@keefkogane**

I D O N O T D R I N K.

**@pidgeon**

Much.

**@keefkogane**

IT WAS ONE TIME. YOU WERE WITH ME. YOU GOT DRUNK TOO.

**@pidgeon**

Never denied that. All I’m saying was that you spent six hours trying to drown my goldfish.

**@keefkogane**

Didn’t I like…succeed in killing him though

**@pidgeon**

YES. YOU MURDERED THE GOLDFISH THAT I STILL OWN KEITH. YOU WERE A T M Y H O U S E YESTERDAY AND HE WAS THERE.

**@keefkogane**

Really? Huh.

**@pidgeon**

You then proceeded to get on the table and belt lyrics to a Nickelback song with strange accuracy at the top of your lungs.

**@tacoboi**

wAIT YOU LIKE NICKELBACK?

**@keefkogane**

...oh no.

**@tacoboi**

hAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAASHAHAHAHAASHHASFHDHGADS

**@tacoboi**

tHIS IS LITERALLY THE FUNNIEST SHIT LIKE THEY’RE ACTUALLY TERRIBLE?!??!!

**@keefkogane**

Have you ever actually listened to their music?

**@tacoboi**

Ah...I listened to Here Without You?

**@keefkogane**

That’s 3 Doors Down.

**@tacoboi**

Well shit.

**@keefkogane**

[[VIDEO SENT]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cQh1ccqu8M)

**@tacoboi**

NO.

**@keefkogane**

Just a suggestion.

**@tacoboi**

Ugh. My head hurts again.

**@keefkogane**

Go lie down and get some food in you. That’s what I did anyway.

**@tacoboi**

Later!

* * *

     Keith recalls the first time he remembers hearing his mother’s voice at least once every day. She was a beautiful woman. Her long black hair that was always up in a high ponytail that stretched down to curl around her neck and rest against her collarbone. Her fair skin with and little freckles that dotted her flushed pink cheeks. She was intelligent from what he’s read in her journals. Her violet eyes and bright smile never ceased to make him smile. But this is what he’s gathered from old pictures. The last picture he took with her rests on his shelf above his bed. It’s a photo of him, six years old and smiling brightly, and his mother, who is grinning as she bounces him on one knee. His father, a tall man with fluffy short black hair and gray eyes, stands behind her.

     But her voice rivaled her beauty.

     He last remembers hearing her voice one bad night when he was six. He’d just woken up from a nightmare, and she came running in to comfort him. He’d been so scared, but she’d just smiled bright and scooped him up in her arms. She’d bounced him a bit as he cried and then she began to sing. Her voice was gentle and it reminded him of a princess.

     _‘Lavender’s blue, dilly dilly, lavender’s green. When I am king dilly dilly, you shall be queen. Who told you so dilly dilly, who told you so? ‘Twas my own heart dilly dilly that told me so.’_

He’d calmed instantly. Just her singing that simple song had gotten him right back to sleep. It was like magic. She’d been the best mother, according to Shiro.

     But then...

     _‘Keith, stay behind me.’_

_‘Just...stay calm everyone. There’s no need for violence now...’_

_‘Shiro, darling, I need you to take your brother and get as far away from here as you can. Don’t look back. Now, go! GO!’_

_**BANG!**_

_Two loud pops echoed through the air and whizzed past Shiro, one grazing his arm as he carried Keith away from the store. He just kept running until they were a safe distance away. He heard several more bullets shatter glass before two shrill screams. He let out a tiny gasp and looked back at the store. All fell silent._

_Their parents’ killer would serve a lifetime in prison, but the two brothers would spend the rest of their lives wondering why. Why would someone do such a thing?_

Keith only visits their parents’ killer once a year. The guy is remorseful, but he can never tell Keith _why._ Why kill their parents? Why shoot at six and a half and eight-and-a-half-year-old boys? He could never say. He _had no reason. No right._

Keith doesn’t hate the man. He blames him for the death of his parents, yes, but he doesn’t hate him. His foster—now adoptive—parents have always taught him forgiveness.

     He’s never told anyone else but Shiro and Pidge what he does or how his parents died. In fact, aside from the people closest to him no one even knows they’re adopted. Not Lance, not Hunk, not Allura. No one.

     Lance is a closed book too though. He’s never told his viewers anything much about his family other than that they’re really close. His older brothers are both employed, one is a businessman and the other is a veterinarian. His older sister in a mother of two and his younger brother and sister are both in high school. Other than their ages and occupation he really doesn’t know much. Lance himself hasn’t really said much about himself in his three years on YouTube and he doesn’t quite understand why. According to Hunk, some pretty sensitive things happened in his past that he doesn’t want to get out and he chooses to keep quiet. He can’t blame him.

     Now though, Lance texts him a lot more than normal. The two of them are a bit closer than they’ve ever been and they seem to fight with less sincerity. Keith wonders why.

* * *

     It’s been a week since the whole hangover incident and with Lance feeling a lot better, he’s worked up the nerve to call Rolo to see if he was angry or even alright. The phone rings twice before he picks up.

     _‘Hey, handsome.’_

Lance blushes. “Hey, Rolo. Uh...listen, about the other night...”

      _‘I’m sorry for bailing on you before you woke up. I had work.’_

“Nah it’s cool. I just...did we?” he asks subtly.

     _‘Yeah...you don’t remember?’_

“Not really. I remember the bar but past that it’s kinda hazy,” he mumbles.

     _‘Sorry, I shoulda stopped you before they let you get that hammered. Are you okay now?’_

“I’m alright. My alcohol tolerance isn’t the best so I was pretty sick but I’m all good now,” he answers, rubbing the back of his head. “Look, maybe we could ah...go eat pizza or something next time, yeah?”

     _‘Next time?’_

Lance’s heart flutters at his curious, gravelly tone. It’s really attractive, even for a voice over the phone.

     “Yeah. I think you’re a pretty cool guy. It’d be nice to maybe...I don’t know, give it a shot?” he offers nervously.

     _‘Totally. How ‘bout we go over to Tommy’s Pizza on Clairmont Street on Friday?’_

“Sure, why not?” he writes down the address and time and they both chat a little while longer before hanging up. Lance then stands to get ready for his next video. He’ll be filming his reaction to old videos from when he was first starting out. He knows it’ll be more cringey than awkward handshakes, but hey, that’s half the fun right?

* * *

     Hunk doesn’t trust this Rolo character. Lance has told him and only him about their relationship and he knows that Lance seems happy. So, he doesn’t say anything to Lance. He just hopes he doesn’t regret it. The guy seems really shady, and his friends don’t seem like very good people. They’d gone to a pretty sleazy bar and Lance had gotten so drunk it had nearly cost him his life. His fever had been climbing when Hunk found him, and it could have killed him. What if it happened again and he wasn’t there to stop it?

* * *

     Keith sees more and more photos of Lance and this Rolo guy on Twitter appear every day. Lance continues to tell his fans that the two are just friends. Hunk had PMed him that day and even he doesn’t trust Rolo. Shiro, Pidge, and Allura don’t understand what they mean; if Lance is happy what’s wrong? They can’t see that Lance might be making the wrong choice. All toxic relationships start out happy. He’s currently going through Twitter, stomach churning as he sees new accounts appearing with Rolance. He often goes around and laughs about the Klance ship accounts on Twitter because it amuses him. He and Lance would _never_ be a good pair. They fought too much. But this isn’t amusing. This is sickening. Every picture he sees Rolo has a subtle glint in his eyes that are looking directly at Lance. You can only pick it out if you know what lust looks like. He’s just...unsettling.

* * *

     A month into the relationship, Lance finds himself once again in Rolo’s apartment, slightly less drunk than before. He wakes up in bed, this time with a clearer memory of the night before. He feels better too, head still aching but not nearly as bad as the last time. Rolo had made sure Lance only has a few beers and stopped him. It had been Lance that had taken Rolo to bed last night, and that’s how it usually is in his relationships. Lance would insinuate, he’d wake up to find it had been just a one-time thing and then he’d move on. He usually had trouble with forming strong relationships with women _and_ men because of how many people had taken advantage of him. But Rolo has been one of the first to stick around after the first night. He rolls over to see that Rolo is asleep, his bare shoulders facing Lance. He seems peaceful so Lance gets up quietly and gets dressed to make coffee for the two of them. He manages to keep the food they’d eaten last night down as he brews the drinks. Rolo stumbles out wearing only shorts as he pours the coffee into the mugs. He adds his own touches to their drinks and passes Rolo his mug. His boyfriend takes a sip and his eyes light up.

     “Damn,” he hums. “You make good coffee.”

     Lance smirks and sips his own, forming a coffee mustache. “I know. It’s pretty great.”

     Rolo sighs. “I’m tired of having to sneak around. I really wish you’d tell your viewers.”

     “I will...when I’m ready,” he wanders over to the couch. He grabs the remote and turns the TV on. He curls into the cushions as the opening credits for an episode of The X-Files plays. He feels Rolo scoot next to him and wrap an arm around his shoulders. Lance leans into him and cradles his mug with both his hand as he drinks. The two sit like that for quite a while watching TV while they sip on their coffee. Lance finishes his first and sets his mug on the table. He leans back against Rolo and after a while longer of watching the show, the older man feels his partner’s body slacken against him. He looks down at him to see his eyes closed and jaw lax, his mouth slightly ajar. He’s adorable. He quietly takes a photo and sends it to the group chat with Lance’s friends he’d joined the week prior.

* * *

**Allura**

Omg that’s adorable. Saved!

**Pidge**

The blackmail potential here is great.

**Shiro**

So sweet.

**Hunk**

Are you...shirtless? Where are you guys?

**Rolo**

My place. He spent the night.

**Keith**

You guys didn’t...

**Rolo**

So what if we did? His choice.

**Hunk**

He looks a bit off. Was he drinking?

**Rolo**

A little bit.

**Hunk**

Rolo you have to be careful. His alcohol tolerance is REALLY low.

**Rolo**

Yeah, I know. I’m keeping an eye on him. I don’t have work until twelve thirty

**Keith**

Does he need a ride home? Hunk could take him.

**Rolo**

I’ll let him stay here until I have to go. It’s a few hours he’ll be fine.

**Hunk**

Just...make sure you call me if anything happens.

**Rolo**

Yeah yeah, mooom.

**Hunk**

Shut up lol.

* * *

     Lance wakes up to Rolo shaking him.

     “Hey, you okay?” he murmurs in concern.

     “Yeah,” he mumbles wearily.

     “You weren’t waking up. I...I thought something happened,” he sighs with a smile, eyes closing in relief.

     “I’m okay,” he assures him, sitting up from his spot on the couch and rubbing his head. He’s sweaty, but his headache is a lot better. He smiles reassuringly at him before planting a quick kiss on his forehead. “You have work soon, huh?”

      “I could call in if you don’t think you—“

     “I can handle myself, babe. You go to work and contribute to society,” he teases, gently punching his arm.

     Rolo lets out a laugh and returns the soft punch to Lance’s chest. The two play fight for a moment before Rolo goes to get ready for work. They meet in the hallway and give each other a kiss goodbye before they head their separate ways.

* * *

     It’s two more weeks later when Hunk gets a call from Rolo.

     _‘Hey, I know you don’t like me but Lance isn’t answering his phone and I think something’s wrong. We went out last night and I promise he literally only had two shots. I don’t know what he had but it can’t have been enough to get him drunk. I dropped him off at home and he was fine. I swear. I have work today and I need someone to check on him.’_

Hunk sighs after listening to the message for the fourth time. He really wants to just ignore it and let Lance deal with the consequences of his actions. He knows he and Rolo had been out three nights in a row, and he knows that he and Rolo were vandalizing an alleyway on the second. Lance had defended himself by saying it wasn’t like they wrote something bad, but Hunk had been so furious that he left the group chat. But if anything happened to Lance that he could have prevented he’d never forgive himself.

* * *

     Lance’s door is locked so he turns his key in the lock. The door swings open to a dark and quiet house. He frowns. Lance never leaves his lights off, even at night.

     “Lance?” he calls, his voice echoing through the quiet house. No answer. A soft bark comes from the bedroom.

     He jogs back and flicks the light on. “Oh GOD!”

     Lance is sprawled across his bed, skin sheet white. His cheeks are pink and he’s shaking. He’s sweating enough to fill a pool and his sheets are a mess. This is more than a couple shots. He looks like he’s...detoxing? Almost like he were on drugs. What had Rolo _done?_ If it was even Rolo. If not...what had _Lance_ done?

     He pounces on his friend and feels for a pulse. It’s rapid and thready, never a good sign. He places a hand on Lance’s stomach and counts his breaths, which are labored and fast.

     “Lance? Lance, can you hear me?” he barks.

     He doesn’t even move beside the subtle shaking and panting.

     “Lance!” he shouts again. Blue whines.

    He straightens Lance out and pulls his blanket over him. He glances around to see Lance’s anti-anxiety meds resting on his nightstand. What the _fuck?_ Had he taken his meds while he was drunk?

    He knows this is out of his hands and calls an ambulance.

* * *

    Lance wakes up with a groan in a hospital bed. He goes to move his hands and finds his wrists tied down. His ankles are the same way.

    “Hello,” Hunk bites out.

    “Why am I tied to a fucking bed?” he mumbles.

    “You’ve been considered suicidal until you can tell them what the fuck you were thinking,” he snaps. “You know if Rolo hadn’t called me, you could’ve _died._ I could have walked in to find you _dead._ Do you have _any_ idea how fucking _stupid_ that was? You _know_ you’re not supposed to take those while you’re drinking. And _whiskey?_ You were drinking _whiskey?_ That stuff messes you up man! What the fuck were you doing?”

    Lance reels, face twisting in anger. “It’s my fucking choice what I drink, Hunk! And it’s not like I was exactly aware at the time! I don’t even remember taking them,” he huffs.

    “Oh my God,” Hunk groans. “That’s it, I can’t deal with this anymore! Rolo is _not good for you._ You’re getting drunk, you’re vandalizing shit...Lance, you almost _died_ yesterday. I’ve been waiting here since yesterday. I skipped _work_ , I even left my bird alone all day for you! I’m tired of putting up with all these bullshit excuses you give to defend him! He’s not a good guy!”

     “Hunk, who the fuck do you think you are to tell me whether or not my boyfriend is a good guy?” he barks impulsively. “Maybe you just don’t know me as well as you thought you did!”

     Hunk tears up but refuses to let Lance see. He stumbles back as if he’s been struck and somewhere in his mind Lance knows he should be feeling remorse or regret, but he’s too angry.

     “Fine then. I’ll just go. Don’t bother calling me to let me know if you’re okay. I don’t even care anymore,” Hunk throws his hands up and walks out of the room. He hears Lance call his name but he just keeps walking.

     Lance is left alone in the room, unable to follow Hunk and left to stew with his tumultuous emotions.

* * *

A few weeks later, Keith and Lance are talking over DMs.

* * *

**Keith**

Hey, have you heard from Hunk? He seems a little off lately.

**Lance**

Why should I care? He doesn’t.

**Keith**

He told me about your fight...Lance, I know you don’t like it but you have to consider the facts

**Lance**

What facts.

**Keith**

Well I mean...

**Lance**

Spit it out!

**Keith**

You’ve been...different since you started dating Rolo. You’re uploading less and drinking more, and you’re breaking the law. Just because it’s a misdemeanor doesn’t mean it’s okay.

**Lance**

Et tu, huh Keith?

**Keith**

Listen, I just want to make sure you don’t bite off more than you can chew. Especially after Nyma.

**Lance**

Rolo isn’t like Nyma. She was crazy. Rolo cares about me.

**Keith**

How much do you really know about him? I mean, he continuously lets you go out drinking, he doesn’t keep an eye on you, and he’s always at work. He couldn’t even check on you when you passed out.

**Lance**

You’re just jealous.

**Keith**

Why the fuck would I be jealous of you Lance?

**Lance**

Maybe because I have someone who actually cares.

**Keith**

That was too far.

**Lance**

Whatever. I have to go.

* * *

     Three months into Lance and Rolo’s relationship is when everything starts getting even worse. Lance is sick almost every day from drinking and he can’t drive much anymore. He still uploads, but not as often. Once, maybe twice every week rather than a video a day. Of course, his viewers don’t know what’s really going on.

* * *

**@klancekid**

Keith and Lance seem pretty miffed at each other.

* * *

_Quoted Tweet_

**_@tacoboi_ **

_Whatever. Just don’t talk to me. **@keefkogane**_

* * *

**@klancelovr**

I wonder if it has anything to do with Rolo?

**@klancekid**

Maybe.

* * *

     Keith rubs his eyes and sighs. Lance was out again last night. He’s getting really worried. If something were to happen now, there’s no one to get Lance out of the situation. He knows Lance has blocked Hunk’s number and that they haven’t spoken in a few weeks, but he can tell Hunk is still concerned. He’s still pissed, but he constantly asks Keith if Lance has been responding to messages or if he’s even still alive. The two of them grew up in the same small California town and they were closer than brothers. But lately, their relationship was strained and broken, though he and Keith are at odds nowadays too.

* * *

     Shiro has joined the bandwagon. He really doesn’t like this guy. Hunk was really upset over Lance’s attitude, and Keith was stressed too. Lance had left the group chat after they’d all tried to get him to reevaluate Rolo’s character, but he still responds to their Tweets. They’re all really worried that Lance isn’t going to get out of this alive, and they all know how aggressive Rolo is with their relationship. Any night Lance is out with him, he ends up staying at Rolo’s apartment. He does have good days, where he and Lance will take pictures out on the beach together and then go home to their own places. Or sometimes Lance will just stay home and pre-record videos for the next few days that he’ll be out with Rolo. His parents still don’t know about this, and he doesn’t plan on telling them.

     Lance doesn’t know _what_ he’d do if his mother found out about his drinking problem.

* * *

     It’s three and a half months into their relationship the first time Rolo drags Lance into trouble.

     Lance is shopping with him when he sees Rolo tuck a CD into his jacket. He frowns.

     ”Uh...you have to pay for that,” he reminds him.

     “Aw c’mon,” he elbows him gently. “They won’t miss it.”

     “But that’s illegal,” he trembles uncertainly.

     “Yeah, that’s half the fun! Don’t be a buzzkill babe. They don’t have censors, we won’t get caught. I know it’s your favorite,” he throws on the puppy-dog eyes and the seductive smile that gets Lance to do whatever he wants.

     It works.

     Lance sighs and lets it go, and the two manage to walk out with the CD. They approach the car and Rolo holds the door open for Lance. Everything inside of him is screaming to run, to tell someone. But he’s never had someone care for him like Rolo does...not since...

     He shakes it off and climbs into the passenger seat, flopping into the seat cushions and sighing, sinking into his hoodie. Rolo shuts the door and Lance rubs his temples with his hand.

     “It’s fine baby,” Rolo assures him, sliding into the driver’s seat. “Tell you what, you can come over tonight and listen to it with me. We can watch Orange is the New Black. I know you love that show,” he suggests with a smirk.

     “Okay,” he mumbles.

* * *

     They end up curled together on the couch again, watching the show as Lance’s Ke$ha CD plays low in the background.

     Lance is caught up in the show, so he jumps when he feels Rolo’s lips against his neck. His hot breath sends shivers up Lance’s spine and he gets chills. He feels more kisses trail down to his shoulder and feels Rolo’s teeth tug on his shirt.

     “You’re sexy when you’re quiet,” he whispers in his ear in his soft, gravelly voice.

     Lance lets Rolo gently tug his shirt over his head before throwing his own to the side. Rolo pushes him onto his back on the couch, kissing his stomach and causing Lance to giggle and squirm because he’s ticklish. Rolo’s kisses trail back up to his neck before he nibbles on Lance’s earlobe and kisses his jaw. Then, he kisses him, forcing his mouth open with his tongue. Lance relishes in the taste and the two stumble back to the bedroom. Rolo regrets never doing this while Lance was sober because this is much more aggressive and demanding.

     He loves it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gettin' steamy up in here.


End file.
